Drug Costs Archives - Page 4 of 35

The Health of the Campaign

Episode 366

Oct. 4, 2024

The 2024 presidential race is taking on a familiar tone — with Democrats accusing Republicans of wanting to ban abortion and repeal the Affordable Care Act and Republicans insisting they have no such plans. Voters will determine whom they believe. Meanwhile, for the second time in a month, a state judge overturned an abortion ban, but few expect the decision to settle the matter. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Lauren Sausser, who reported and wrote the latest KFF Health News-Washington Post “Bill of the Month,” about a teenage athlete whose needed surgery lacked a billing code.

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KFF Health News & PolitiFact HealthCheck

Harris Correct That Trump Fell Short on Promise To Negotiate Medicare Drug Prices

The former president instead favored a temporary model that could’ve brought down prices of some prescription drugs, but it was blocked by the courts.

By Jacob Gardenswartz

Oct. 3, 2024

What the Health? From KFF Health News

Congress Punts to a Looming Lame-Duck Session

Episode 365

Sept. 26, 2024

Congress left Washington for the campaign trail this week, but not before approving a spending bill that expires shortly before Christmas. Lawmakers will be busy after the election working on not just the legislation needed to keep the government running, but also several health programs set to expire. Meanwhile, Republicans continue to downplay abortion as Democrats press it as a campaign issue. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico join KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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What the Health? From KFF Health News

American Health Under Trump — Past, Present, and Future

Episode 364

Sept. 19, 2024

Dreaming of a Trump victory, Republicans have a wish list of health policy changes — including loosening Affordable Care Act regulations to make cheaper coverage available and ending Medicare drug price negotiations. Meanwhile, after a publicly reported death stemming from a state abortion ban, Vice President Kamala Harris is emphasizing the consequences of Trump’s work to overturn Roe v. Wade. Tami Luhby of CNN, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Joanne Kenen of Politico and Johns Hopkins University join KFF Health News senior editor Emmarie Huetteman to discuss these stories and more.

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A roll of one hundred dollar bills sits among a row of prescription medication bottles.

California May Regulate and Restrict Pharmaceutical Brokers

California lawmakers are moving to rein in the pharmaceutical middlemen they say drive up costs and limit consumers’ choices. The bill sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom would require pharmacy benefit managers to be licensed in California and would ban some business practices. Newsom vetoed a previous effort three years ago.

By Don Thompson

Sept. 18, 2024

Health Brief

Harris and Trump Are Ready To Take on Big Pharma

By Stephanie Armour

Sept. 10, 2024

A hand is holding a remote control, there is a blurred TV screen in the background.

Perspective

With TV Drug Ads, What You See Is Not Necessarily What You Get

The pharmaceutical industry has invented a new art form: finding ways to make their wares seem like joyous must-have treatments, while often minimizing lackluster efficacy and risks.

By Elisabeth Rosenthal

Sept. 9, 2024

Two photos shown next to each other: a photo of Donald Trump on the left and Kamala Harris on the right.

Elections

For Pharma, Trump vs. Harris Is a Showdown Between Two Industry Foes

Vice President Kamala Harris is seen as more aggressive than former President Donald Trump in taking on pharmaceutical companies, but Trump allies say he would also make lowering drug costs a top priority.

By Stephanie Armour

Aug. 26, 2024

A photograph of Sen. Chuck Grassley, who is seated during a senate hearing.

New Lines of Attack Form Against the Affordable Care Act

While fighting potential fraud in government programs has long been a conservative rallying cry, recent criticisms of the Affordable Care Act represent a renewed line of attack on the program when repealing it is unlikely.

By Julie Appleby

Aug. 15, 2024

How Little Denmark Got Homegrown Giant Novo Nordisk To Lower Ozempic Prices

As Congress pushes for Medicare to cover payment for anti-obesity drugs, Denmark — Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk’s home — has limited coverage of the drug after cost overruns “emptied all the money boxes in the entire public health system.”

By Arthur Allen

Aug. 8, 2024

An illustration drawn with pencil and colored digitally shows a scientist-type man in the center of the image. He holds two halves of an Ozempic-like injector in his gloved hands and pours a mysterious liquid from one side to the other. Behind him, corporate copycats, drawn as floating heads and hands, watch to steal his formula while they manipulate their own mysterious liquid. The floating copycats repeat into the background.

Why Millions Are Trying FDA-Authorized Alternatives to Big Pharma’s Weight Loss Drugs

Although Novo Nordisk and Lilly lump together the pharmacies that compound semaglutide and tirzepatide with internet cowboys selling fake drugs, there is a distinction. The FDA has offered Americans little clarity about the vast gray and black markets for the drugs.

By Arthur Allen

July 23, 2024

A photo of Kamala Harris on a stage in front of a podium with a microphone.

Elections

Harris, Once Biden’s Voice on Abortion, Would Take an Outspoken Approach to Health

If she grabs the baton from President Joe Biden to become the new presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Kamala Harris would widely be expected to take an aggressive stance in support of abortion access — hitting former President Donald Trump on an issue that could undermine his chances of victory.

By Stephanie Armour, Julie Appleby, and Julie Rovner

July 21, 2024

What the Health? From KFF Health News

At GOP Convention, Health Policy Is Mostly MIA

Episode 356

July 18, 2024

After an assassination attempt last weekend sent former President Donald Trump to the hospital with minor injuries, the Republican National Convention went off with little mention of health care issues. And Trump’s newly nominated vice presidential pick, Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, has barely staked out a record on health during his 18 months in office — aside from being strongly opposed to abortion. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Renuka Rayasam, who wrote June’s installment of KFF Health News-NPR “Bill of the Month,” about a patient who walked into what he thought was an urgent care center and walked out with an emergency room bill. 

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KFF Health News & PolitiFact HealthCheck

Trump Is Wrong in Claiming Full Credit for Lowering Insulin Prices

Though the Trump administration established a voluntary, temporary program lowering insulin costs for some older Americans on Medicare, the mandatory price caps implemented through Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act go significantly further.

By Jacob Gardenswartz

July 18, 2024

1st Biden-Trump Debate of 2024: What They Got Wrong, and Right

A debate marked by President Joe Biden’s faltering performance featured clashes over insulin costs, inflation, abortion, immigration, and Jan. 6.

By KFF Health News and PolitiFact staffs

June 28, 2024

Health Brief

Weight-Loss Drugs Are So Popular They’re Headed for Medicare Negotiations

By Renuka Rayasam

June 7, 2024

High Price of Popular Diabetes Drugs Deprives Low-Income People of Effective Treatment

The makers of Ozempic and Mounjaro charge list prices of around $1,000 a month for the diabetes and obesity drugs, and insurers are reluctant to pick up the tab. Often, low-income patients have to resort to less effective treatments.

By Renuka Rayasam

May 21, 2024

Letters to the Editor

Readers Speak Up About Women’s Health Issues, From Reproductive Care to Drinking

KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.

April 9, 2024

KFF Health News & PolitiFact HealthCheck

Biden Is Right About $35 Insulin Cap but Exaggerates Prior Costs for Medicare Enrollees

Most Medicare enrollees likely were not paying a monthly average of $400 — as President Joe Biden stated — before the insulin cap took effect. However, because costs and other factors result in widely varying prices, some Medicare enrollees might have paid that much in a given month.

By Samantha Putterman, PolitiFact

April 5, 2024

What the Health? From KFF Health News

Florida Limits Abortion — For Now

Episode 341

April 4, 2024

The Florida Supreme Court handed down dual abortion rulings this week. One said voters will be allowed to decide in November whether to create a state right to abortion. The other ruling, though, allows a 15-week ban to take effect immediately — before an even more sweeping, six-week ban replaces it in May. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden is doubling down on his administration’s health care accomplishments as he kicks off his general election campaign. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins University schools of nursing and public health, and Tami Luhby of CNN join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews health care analyst Jeff Goldsmith about the growing size and influence of UnitedHealth Group in the wake of the Change Healthcare hack.

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